


ignorance as my best defense

by barelyprolific



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Male-Female Friendship, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-16
Updated: 2019-11-16
Packaged: 2021-01-31 14:08:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21447451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/barelyprolific/pseuds/barelyprolific
Summary: A conversation between Hen and Buck while at the park. Set between "Monsters" and "Malfunction".
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley & Henrietta "Hen" Wilson, Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz, Henrietta "Hen" Wilson/Karen Wilson
Comments: 22
Kudos: 338





	ignorance as my best defense

**Author's Note:**

> Ahhh 50 fics! And that's not even including the old shit I've taken down. Happy and proud to give 50 to buddie, though. They deserve it.

“So what’s Karen up to today?”

Buck sits with his legs spread, elbows on the back of the bench on either side of him, facing the playground. Next to him, Hen takes a sip from her water bottle while she considers how to answer. The truth isn’t something she thinks Buck will want to hear. Before she can answer, though, Buck is holding up his hand, craning his neck.

“Wait, hold on a second. Christopher!” He calls out. Out on the playground, Christopher sits on a swing, hands wrapped loosely around the chains dangling from the structure. “Christopher, not too high, okay?”

“Okay, Buck!” Christopher calls back. Behind him, Denny nods his own understanding. Satisfied, Buck turns back to Hen. 

“Sorry, what were you saying? About Karen?”

Hen stares at him for a few seconds with a faint smile on her face. After it goes on a little long, Buck squirms slightly.

“What?”

“Parenthood has changed you, Buckaroo.”

Mouth falling open, Buck’s whole face turns faintly pink. Then he drops Hen’s gaze, ducks his head with a huff of laughter, shakes it once. He rubs his palms over his thighs. 

“Thanks, Hen.”

One of Hen’s eyebrows goes up, and she leans back against the bench, turning slightly to face him, propping one of her own arms up on the back. 

“You’re not even gonna deny it, huh?”

“Well, to be honest, you’re not the first person to say something like that to me.” Buck shrugs, lifts his gaze to look at Hen. There’s something nervous there that makes her soften.

“Well, anyone with eyes knows you love that boy like he’s yours.” She glances out on the playground and her other hand raises so that she can snap, point at Denny. “Hey, Buck said not too high, Denny.”

Buck glances towards Christopher and Denny, who grabs the chains of the swing when Christopher descends to stop him. They start again, slower.

“He’s an amazing kid,” Buck says, voice a little choked. “I’m lucky Eddie lets me spend so much time with him.”

“Hell, Eddie probably feels lucky you want to spend so much time with him,” Hen points out. Buck laughs again, shrugs.

“Maybe.”

“Nuh-uh, no maybe. With you around, Eddie has a co-parent, and trust me when I say that having a co-parent is the best way to parent. Even just one kid can be so much, sometimes.” 

She should have phrased it differently, Hen knows it as soon as she says it. Buck latches on, probably desperate to change the subject.

Hen can understand the feeling.

“You never told me how things are going on the baby front with you and Karen.”

Again, Hen hesitates. This really isn’t the sort of thing she discusses with Buck. Not that she’s finding it easy to discuss it with Athena or Chimney, either. 

“We...the embryos… None of them were viable. Karen couldn’t get pregnant using them. So a baby’s not...happening.”

Buck is silent for so long that Hen starts thinking she _ did _ overshare, and he didn’t actually want to hear any of that. Then she feels his hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently.

“I’m sorry,” he says, “That really sucks.”

It’s such a typically Buck thing to say that Hen laughs, uses a knuckle to brush away some dampness from her eyes. 

“It does.” She nods slightly.

“So, is that why you agreed to come with me to take Christopher to the park?”

“Partly.” It’s surprisingly easy to be honest with him. “Another part of me wanted to see Daddy Buck in action.”

“Please don’t say anything like that in front of Eddie,” Buck begs, cheeks turning red again. “I don’t want him to freak out.”

“I highly doubt he would freak out.” 

“Look, I--” Buck starts, stops, starts again. “The thing is, Eddie and me…” He stops again, take a deep breath. “I’ve never known anyone, before, like I know him. Even with Abby, you know, it was... Well, it wasn’t what I thought it was. But with Eddie… Things are _ good _ with Eddie and me again, finally, and with me and Eddie and Christoper,” Buck gestures to where Christopher and Denny have moved on to the slide on the play structure. “I don’t want _ anything _ to screw it up again.”

Hen isn’t sure what about Buck’s little speech surprises her the most. Comparing his friendship with Eddie to his relationship with Abby isn’t even close. Maybe it’s how self-aware Buck sounds. 

Hen knows he’s in love with Eddie, but she didn’t know _ Buck _ knew.

“You ever gonna tell him?” She shifts again, so that she’s facing the playground, carefully not looking at Buck. Pretends not to hear his voice crack when he replies. 

“Maybe someday. If I know for sure he feels the same.”

There are dozens of things Hen could say to Buck about that. Things like, _ you’ll never know if you don’t say something,_ or _ can’t you see that he does? _All Hen does is move her hand to rub his shoulder, mimicking his earlier gesture. 

If Buck’s figured this much out on his own, he’ll stumble the rest of the way there.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think! As always, your feedback is appreciated!


End file.
